Greetings from the sunny capital city of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Exactly why am I here? I came for two months to visit family.

Let me first give a little background on the place and then we’ll get to the good stuff. Amman is a very large urban center.

The city was built on seven original hills in the west central part of the country. It is an arid climate similar to the American states of Arizona and New Mexico.

It’s a place where some of the first settlements of humanity were created. It’s also a land where many important plants and animals were domesticated.

Jordan’s been ruled by just about everyone over the centuries: Sumerians, Babylonians, Greeks, Romans, Ottomans, Muslims and the list goes on.

Here’s another little fun fact – not everyone in the Middle East is a desert-inhabiting nomad whose primary mode of transportation is a camel.

Amman, the city I’m living in, is a huge and modern city with everything from Pringles to Burger King to Dunkin’ Donuts. I was in a coffee shop a couple of nights ago and it felt like I was in Manhattan.

While we’re on the subject, I saw something a couple of days ago that is about as ironic as it gets. We were in downtown Amman at the Roman amphitheatre that sits among the modern buildings of the city.

Literally next door to this marvel of ancient engineering and architecture were the bright and shining golden arches of McDonald’s. I didn’t know whether to laugh or weep.

Ah, yes, I said to myself, the wonderful world of globalization. Of course it doesn’t stop there. American brands of food and other products are everywhere.

Of course, I knew this before I came. Everyone knows it. The world has been inundated with the mighty McNugget.

The more I think about it, the more I realize that it is not the products and restaurants themselves that I dislike, it’s the fact that it seems so many people love them.

Believe me, I’m all about the coming together of cultures, but certainly not the further lining of bigwig pocketbooks back in the states.

The last thing I want to see when I’m in Jordan, a cradle of ancient human settlement, is the Arab-ized version of the Colonel’s Crunchy Chicken Finger Basket.

One thing that gives me hope, though, is a tradition that has managed to survive the ages. Of course, my favorite part of the trip so far is the food.

So naturally, I would notice something interesting that is associated with it. Similar to the Spanish tradition of siesta, the main meal of the day is at about 2 in the afternoon.

Generally, the adults of the family come home from work in the middle afternoon for a big meal. Then comes the good part – the nap.

Most people take a little break for an hour or so, and then either head back to work or carry on with whatever tasks there are. It’s a tradition that’s been around for a long time, and one I think we could use in the U.S.

Just think of going to class following a nice mid-afternoon nap. Certainly something worth trying.

Another reason for hope is a place called Kan Zaman, which means “long ago” in Arabic. It’s similar to Living History Farms in Des Moines, only built on a historical site itself. Inside is a restaurant set up in the traditional way, with all the good food too. As you eat, there’s usually live Arabic music as well.

Also, demonstrations of age-old glass blowing techniques are given another area.

In addition to this, a working spice market, old-time photo studio, and traditional embroidery demonstrations and shops are present. It’s an interesting way to stay in touch with the traditional culture.

Of course, Arab culture has and will probably always remain distinctly different from American culture.

It’s not so much the influence itself I really resent, but the fact that only the corporations win. Jordan is a land with such a remarkable history that it’s difficult to see it is scarred by too much globalization. It’s something I expected to find, and will probably find for a while.

As for right now, though, I think I’ll go grab a burger and fries compliments of Burger King.

Omar Tesdell is a sophomore in journalism and mass communication from Slater, Iowa.